Months before the controversial departure from Manchester United, Cristiano Ronaldo's money

Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Manchester United for his second spell in the summer of 2021, sending fans into a frenzy. His first season went well as the Portuguese finished as the club's top scorer in all competitions. However, the Red Devils failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League and the Portuguese has reportedly handed in a transfer request seeking the Champions League.

After failing to get his transfer wish to join a club playing in the Champions League, reports claimed Ronaldo was set to fulfill his contract with United. Despite Ronaldo's decision to honor his contract with United, the English club sought to sign a striker. Meanwhile, their archrivals spoiled their plans to sign a highly sought-after striker.

United entered the market with the profile of a striker. Ten Hag also insisted on a striker to start a rebuild at United. The club identified the then Benfica striker Darwin Nuñez as the ideal player to accompany Ronaldo. Reports linked United to Nuñez for most of the summer.

United's hopes of landing a striker have stalled, leaving Ronaldo and Anthony Martial their only options. Things went from bad to worse with Ronaldo disappointing in his role under a new manager. He had some incidents with Ten Hag that saw the Portuguese cut from the squad for several Premier League games.

Cristiano Ronaldo is in top form this year

Ronaldo did not have the desired start at Al Nassr. However, he soon turned the tide and won the Saudi Pro League Player of the Month award for February. He scored eight goals and provided two assists during that period. Ronaldo surpassed 500 league goals in the process. The former Manchester United player also became the first player to reach 100 goals for the national team in official matches, not counting friendlies.